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IMPACT OF NUCLEAR TECHNOLOGY ON HIGHWAY ENGINEERING

MODERN AUTOMOTIVE TRANSPORTATION REQUIRES WISE HANDLING, PROCESSING AND TESTING OF NATURAL MATERIALS FOR HIGHWAY CONSTRUCTION. NEW MATERIALS ARE BEING USED TO BUILD AND MAINTAIN THE HIGHWAY STRUCTURE. NUCLEAR TECHNOLOGY IS RAPIDLY BEING APPLIED AS A TOOL FOR MEASURING AND TESTING MATERIALS IN CONSTRUCTION AND MAINTENANCE OPERATIONS. PERFORMANCE OF NONDESTRUCTIVE TESTS FOR MATERIAL SUITABILITY AND SPEED OF MEASURING BY NUCLEAR METHODS PROVIDE BETTER PROCESSING AND CONSTRUCTION CONTROLS. THE FLOW OF MATERIALS CAN BE MEASURED AND TESTED BY EXTREMELY SMALL QUANTITIES OF RADIOACTIVE MATERIALS. SUCH TRACER TECHNIQUES ASSIST BOTH IN MATERIAL PRODUCTION AND IN HIGHWAY STRUCTURAL DESIGN. NUCLEAR ENERGY ALSO HAS SOME PROMISE FOR CHANGING THE CONSISTENCY OF INFERIOR SOILS TO PRODUCE A SUITABLE ENGINEERING MATERIAL. NUCLEAR POWER, HEAT AND EXPLOSIVES MAY AFFECT HIGHWAY LOCATION, DESIGN AND CONSTRUCTION PROCEDURES, AND EVENTUALLY MAY BRING ABOUT NEW PRINCIPLES AND TECHNOLOGY IN HIGHWAY ENGINEERING.